Apparatus for burning ceramic materials.



H. L. DOHERTY. APPARATUS FOB. BURNING CERAMIC MATERIALS.

APPLICATION TILED 11-1247, 1910.

I 974,646. Patented Nov. 1, 1910.

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Q giuw Henry LDoherU, awue/wlioz nu: NORRIS PETERS 5a.. wnsumorou. o. c.

11.- L. DOHERTY. APPARATUS FOR BURNING. GERAMIO MATERIALS.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 17, 1910.

- Patented Nov. 1, 1910.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

Henry L. Dnherfy, 5mm

wi/bfleooco iwdow THE NcRRls PETERS ca. wnsnmcron, u c.

H. L. DOHERTY APPARATUS FOR BURNING CERAMIC MATERIALS.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 17. 1910.

974,646 r Patented Nov. 1,1910.

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Henry LDohr vwewto o 331 2135 a/ltmmg H. L- DOHERTY. APPARATUS FOR BURNING CERAMIC MATERIALS.

'APPLIOATION FILED 2212.17, 1910. 974,646. Patented N0 v.1,1910.

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Henry L. Doherty, SMQMOL m: NORRIS Pzrsns cm, WASHINGYON, u. c

HENRY L. DOI-IERTY, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

APPARATUS FOR. BURNING CERAMIC MATERIALS.

Application filed February 17, 1910.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 1,1910.

Serial No. 544,486.

To all whom 'it may concern:

Be it known that I, HENRY L. DOHERTY, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of New York city, in the county of New York and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Apparatus for Burning Ceramic Materials, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to apparatus for burning ceramic materials, with special reference to the burning of structural bricks.

The object of my invention is to provide* combustion gases discharging from the kiln;

Briefly, the improvement which is the subjectof this applicationcomprises amodification of the apparatus described and claimed in the application above referred to which consists of a battery of kilns having a longitudinal tunnel running under the battery, and a movable platform supported on trucks running on rails laid in said tunnel, the said platform supporting a hydraulic ram whose plunger bears a vertically movable platform having rails laid on its upper surface upon which the truck which is to receive the charge. of finished productcan be run, as well as other features which are hereinafter described in detail.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a vertical, part cross section through one ofthe individual kilns composing the battery on say the line A B of Fig. 2. Fig. 2 is a horizontal, part cross-section of the battery on the line C D of Fig. 1, C D of and C D of Fig. a. Fig. 3 is a vertical, part cross-section of a kiln similar to Fig. 1 but showingthe discharging apparatus in'end elevation. Fig. 4: is a vertical, part cross section on the line E F of Fig. 2,'showing the discharging apparatus in side elevation. Fig. 5 is a part, horizontal cross section through the battery of kilns on the line G H of Fig. 1. Fig. 6 is a similar view on the line I J of Fig. 1. Fig.

7 is a part top view of a battery of kilns showinga plan of the arrangement in which the bricks are piled on the charge column.

Fig. 8 is a part, vertical,longitudinal sect-ion through the battery showing the tunnel provided for the movement of the discharging device beneath the kiln shafts and the lateral tunnels or eyes of the individual kilns. -Fig. 9 is an end view of the movable platform bearing the discharging apparatus showing the pump connections.

1, l, 1, etc., designate the individual kilns of the battery; 2, 2", 2", etc., are the shafts of the corresponding kilns. In starting operations a column of previously burned ware is built up from the platform 8 of a truck 4, which truck rests on rails 5, which are cross-connected by the plates 6. The rails rest on springs 7 of any suitable pattern, which, in the arrangement shown, are placed in channels 8 in the discharging platform 9, which is borne by the plunger 10 of hydraulic ram'll. Guides, 12, are provided which prevent any lateral movement of the rails 5. Heavy I-beams, 13, or some form of girder beam, are supported by the short pillars 14E, resting on the platform 9. The beams 13 are set at a height sufficient to clear the platform '3 of truck 4: when the latter loaded with one draw of bricks or other material is resting on tracks 5. The springs 7 are of such strength that they will bear the weight of truck 4 and of the portion of the charge withdrawn at one operation, without suffering compression. When, however, the truck has been lifted by the ram 11 so as to engage the main column of the charge the springs 7 give sufficiently to permit the platform 3 of truck 4 to come to rest on the beams '13. This arrangement permits of the running gears of truck 4 to be made just sufficiently strong to carry the normal load without necessitating their be ing built with the strength required to support the weight of the entire charge in the kiln. The hydraulic ram 11 is supported on a movable platform 15, mounted on suitable trucks 16. A force pump, 17 is also mounted on 15, which pump may be either of a hand or power operated type. Connections 18, are provided from the pump cylinders to the ram cylinder 19, and connections 20 to the accumulator 21. -A direct connection 22 is provided from 21 to the pipe 18 leading to the ram cylinder 19. 23, 23, are the suction connections of the pump 17,

which latter is shown of a doubleactingdesign. Suitable suction check valves, 24,

24, are inserted in 23, 23. 25, 25, are the discharge connections of 17 having the discharge check valves 26, 26. The suction and discharge valves of 17 are, of course, in practice attached to the pump cylinders 27, 27, but, in the diagrammatic illustration of the force pump, 17, shown in the accompanying drawings, are, for the sake of clearness, shown on the respective connections. The tracks 16, of the movable platform 15, run on rails 28, laid in the floor of tunnel 29 which runs beneath the battery of kilns. A pit, 30, in the floor of 29 provides space for the cylinder of the hydraulic ram 11 during the traverse of the tunnel 29 by the platform 15. A motor, 31, mounted on 15 and connected with the driving axle of the trucks, 16, by suitable gearing serves to provide locomotion to the platform 15, with its attached discharging apparatus. The plat form 3 of truck 4, may be either plane, as

shown in the drawings, where special courses of hollow tiles are introduced into the charge column, after the manner described and claimed in my application for Letters Patent .Ser. No. 526,588, filed Nov. 6th, 1909, or may be channeled after the fashion shown in my application for Letters PatentSer. N 0. 525,390, where special bearing courses are not used.

Where special courses of hollow tiles, 32, are built into the charge, as shown in the accompanying drawings, the first course laid on the truck should consist of these tiles. These should be laid in rows, as shown in Fig. 2, with the axes of the tiles in each row located in planes passing through the axes of the corresponding sets of air ports 33-33. Burned brick (or other material) is now built onto the first course of hollow tiles in regular open courses, until the. number of courses corresponding to the number which is to be drawn at one operation has been built onto the charge-the bricks in adjacent courses being preferably laid transversely to each other. Another course of hollow tiles is now laid exactly corresponding in position to the first course. Another charge of burned bricks is laid and then another course of hollow tiles, and so on until the shaft has been filled with burned material.

After several courses have been laid on the first course of hollow tiles the plunger 10 of ram 11 may be raised, by operating the force pump 17, until the open passages formed by the openings of the tiles in the several rows have been caused to register with the corresponding sets of air ports 3333. The adjustable covers 35 of the ports 33 are now opened and the false bars 34 inserted through the ports and their corresponding tile-passages. The plunger 10 is now lowered by either opening the valve 36 on waste pipe 36 or opening valve' 22 The gate 15 is now moved into position to close the bottom of the shaft of kiln 1, and the remainder of the initial charge column built up as before described.

After a kiln has been chargedthe gas producer, 20, having been brought up to normal operating condition in the manner well known to those skilled in the artgas is admitted to the kiln through the producer gas conduit 37, main gas fiues 38 and 38, connecting fiues 39, 39, distributing fiues 40, 40 and gas ports 41, 41, by opening valve 38 and dampers 42, 42. The latter are simply tiles which may be moved to cover more or less of the opening of the connecting fiues 39, 39, thus permitting of the regulation of the fiow of gas to the gas ports 40, 40. Hand holes 43, 43 provide access to the dampers 42, 42, respectively, for the purpose of adjusting them. By introducing a lighted torch or other kindling means through the peep holes 44, 44 the gas issuing from 41, 41 may be ignited. The air for supporting the combustion of the gas is supplied through the air ports 32, the volume being regulated by adjusting the dampers 35. 7

When the heats in the different regions of the shaft have been brought up to their nor mal degree under operating conditions, the kiln is in shape to start the actual burning of raw material. Courses of green bricks, or other ware, are built onto the top of the charge column, to the number that it is desired to draw at each operation. During the charging, the exhauster 45 is put in operation. This induces a draft from the upper part of the kiln shaft, through the ports 46,46, connecting fiues 47, 47, down-takes 48, 48 and main fiues 49, 49 to the exhauster, and thence to the atmosphere. The exhauster 45 should have a capacity much greater than the draft volume of the kiln. It thus not only removes the combustion gases from the upper part of the kiln shaft but at the same time induces a draft of air down through the upper part of the charge to the ports 46, 46. The workmen employed in building the green material on to the charge column are thus protected from annoyance by the kiln gases.

After the charge of green material is in place, the gate 15 is opened, the discharging apparatus is run into position beneath the particular kiln under consideration, the

truck ft is run on to platform 9 and lifted by plunger 10 of hydraulic lift 11, until its platform 3 has engaged the bottoms of the tiles 33, which are supported by the false bars Set. The pump 17 is now operated until the plunger 10 has been lifted a. sulficient distance to lift the weight of the entire column of the charge off of the bars 34. The latter are now withdrawn, and the valve 22 opened slightly. The water slowly escapes from 11, the plunger 10 and the burden which it supports slowly sinking. When the set of transverse passages formed by the second course of hollow tiles register with the ports 8333, the valve 22 is closed, the plunger and its burden coming to rest, and the bars 34 again inserted. \Vateris now permitted to slowly waste through pipe 36 by opening valve 36 slightly until the second course of' hollow tiles and its superincumbent burden rests on the bars 34. Valve 36" is now opened farther and the plunger permitted to sink until the .truck 4 is in position to be run off of platform 9. As the plunger sinks the section of the charge below the second course of hollow tiles, resting on the platform 3 of truck a sinks with it and is detached from the main column of the charge. The truck a is now run to storage, unloaded, and again run on to platform 9 to receive a fresh draw, or another truck supplied in its. place. The operation of charging and drawing is repeated at proper intervals, as above described. The green material is dried by the combustion gases rising through the shaft of the kiln. As it sinks through the kiln it is subjected to contact with gases of higher and higher temperature, until it enters the combustion zone of the kiln at very nearly the temperature prevailing therein.

In passing through the combustion zone the brick (or other ware) is subjected to direct contact with the gas flame, the temperature of which is regulated to that which isrequired to properly burn the bricks. After passing through the combustion zone the hot burned bricks pass gradually clownward through the lower part or cooler of the kiln. Here they are subjected to cool ing by contact with the air current entering through the ports 33-33, and withdrawn at the bottom of the cooler, as above de scribed.

During the normal operation of the kiln a portion of the combustion gases is drawn'oif from the kiln shaft through the ports 50, 50, collecting fines 51, 51, ports 52, 52, flues 53, 53 and conduit chamber of injector The draft through the tines is induced by a jet of air under pressure which is supplied by blower 5G to the nozzle of the injector 55. The mixed air and combustion gas 1s forced under the grate 1n the producer 20 and serves to regu- FA to the induction late the gas producing action therein, as described in my Letters'Patent 829,105 and others.

While my invention is designed specially for use in the burning of bricks, etc., it may be used for various other purposes, such as the heating of billets, the annealing of iron by packing bars of the same in iron-oxid in saggars, or the carbonizing of iron by packing the same with carbon in closed saggars, as well as various other uses.

Having described my invention, what I claim is:

1. In apparatus for burning ce 'amic materials the combination of a plurality of vertical shafts, a tunnel running beneath said shafts, and a single discharging means for the said plurality of shafts, said discharging means being mounted on a movable platform supported by trucks running on rails laid in said tunnel, whereby said discharging means may be moved into position for discharging material from any one of said plurality of shafts.

2. In apparatus for the continuous burning of ceramic ware the combination of a plurality of kiln-chambers, means for introducing air and gas into said chambers, means for withdrawing the products of the combustion of said air and gas from said chant bers, a tunnel running beneath said plurality of kilnchambers, a single discharging means for the said plurality of kiln chambers, said discharging means being mounted on a movable platform supported by trucks running on rails laid in said tunnel, whereby said discharging means may be moved into position for discharging material from anyone of said plurality of kiln chambers.

3. In apparatus for burning ceramic materials the combination of a plurality of vertical shafts, means for introducing air near the bottom of each of said shafts, means in each of said shafts for introducing a combustible gas at an intermediate place in said shaft, means in each of said shafts for withdrawing from said shafts the products of the combustion taking place in said shafts, a tunnel running beneath said plurality of vertical shafts, and a single discharging means for the said plurality of shafts, said discharging means being mounted on a movable platform supported by trucks running on rails laid in said tunnel, whereby said discharging means may be moved into position for discharging material from any one of said plurality of vertical shafts.

4. In apparatus for burning ceramic materials the combination of a plurality of verticalshafts, each of said shafts having a movable gate adapted to close the bottom thereof, dampered air inlets in the walls thereof, inlet ports for the entrance of comshaft above the said air inlets, and passages for the withdrawal of combustion gases, said passages being located above said gas inlets, a tunnel running beneath said plurality of vertical shafts and a single discharging means for the said plurality of vertical shafts, said discharging means being mounted on a movable platform supported by trucks running on rails laid in said tunnel, whereby said discharging means may be moved into position for discharging material from any one of said plurality of vertical shafts.

5. In apparatus for burning ceramic materials the combination of a plurality of vertical shafts, each of said shafts having a plurality of dampered ports for the admis sion of air thereto near the bottom thereof, removable bars adapted to bear in said air ports for the purpose of supporting the charge in said shaft, a movable gate for closing the bottom of said shaft, ports for the admission. of combustible gas into said shaft above the cooler of said shaft, passages for withdrawing combustion gases from said shaft located above the said gas ports; a tunnel running beneath the said plurality of vertical shafts, and a single discharging means for said plurality of vertical shafts, said discharging means comprising a movable truck carrying a hydraulic lift, a platform mounted upon the plunger of said lift,

a removable car supported upon said platform, a force pump for supplying water under pressure to said lift, and means for moving said movable truck in said tunnel, whereby said discharging means may be moved into position for discharging material from any one of said plurality of vertical shafts.

6. In apparatus for the continuous burning of ceramic materials the combination of a plurality of vertical shafts, each of said vertical shafts having a plurality of removable bars near the bottom thereof adapted to support the charge in said shaft, ports in opposite accessible walls of the shaft, adapted to permit of the insertion of said remov able bars and to provide support for the same, a plurality of dampered air ports in the said walls near the bottom thereof, a gate adapted to close the bottom of said shaft, a plurality of ports in the inclosing walls of said shaft above the cooler thereof for the admission of combustible gas thereto, fiues in said inclosing walls con necting said plurality of gas ports, passages connecting said flues with supply conduits for combustible gas, valves on said connections, a plurality of ports in said inclosing Walls above said gas ports for the Wltl1 drawal of a portion of the combustion gases from said shaft, cross-fines connecting said plurality of ports, flues connecting each of to said shaft, valves on said connecting flues and an opening at the top of said shaft for the escape of the waste combustion gases therefrom and for charging ceramic materials thereto; a tunnel running beneath the said plurality of shafts and in open commu nication with the bottoms of said shafts, a single discharging means for said plurality of vertical shafts, said discharging means comprising a movable truck carrying a hydraulic lift, a platform mounted upon the plunger of said lift, a removable car supported upon said platform, a force pump for supplying water under pressure to said lift, and means for moving said movable truck through said tunnel, whereby said discharging means may be moved into position for discharging material from any one of said plurality of vertical shafts.

7. In connect-ion with a plurality of vertical shaftsfor burning ceramic materials a tunnel extending beneath said plurality of shafts and in communication therewith, and a single discharging means for said plurality of shafts adapted to be moved along said tunnel to a discharging position beneath any desired one of said plurality of shafts, said discharging means comprising a carrying truck, a hydraulic lift mounted in a vertical position on said carrying truck, a platform mounted on the plunger of said hydraulic lift, said platform having channels on the face thereof with springs in said channels, rails in said channels resting on said springs, spacing plates rigidly connected with said rails, a truck resting on said rails for receiving the finished material withdrawn from said shafts, beams located beneath the girders of said truck, said beams being supported upon the plat-form of said hydraulic lift and adapted to engage the girders of said truck and lift the platform of said truck with its burden off of the running gears of said truck, when said truck has been depressed by the compression of said springs by the weight of the charge in one of said shafts, a force pump for supplying waterunder pressure to the cylinder of said hydraulic lift and an accumulator for conserving the energy developed by the subsidence of the charge in said shaft during the operation of drawing.

Signed at New York city in the county of New York and State of New York this 16th day of January, A. D. 1910.

HENRY L. DOHERTY. lVitnesses W. G. BERRYMAN, THos. I. CARTER. 

